Connecticut Becomes the First State to Increase Minimum Wage to $10.10 per Hour by 2017

On March 27, 2014, Connecticut became the first state in the country to pass legislation mandating an increase to the state minimum wage to $10.10 per hour by 2017—the same rate to which President Barack Obama is seeking to raise the federal minimum wage. The Connecticut state legislature approved the bill on March 26, and Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy signed the bill into law the following day.

Last year, Connecticut passed legislation that would have raised the minimum wage in Connecticut by 30 cents per hour to $9.00 per hour as of January 1, 2015. Under the new legislation, the minimum wage will instead increase to $9.15 per hour as of January 1, 2015, $9.60 per hour as of January 1, 2016, and ultimately $10.10 per hour as of January 1, 2017.

In passing this legislation, Connecticut has now imposed the highest state minimum wage in the country. Between 70,000 and 90,000 workers currently earn the minimum wage in Connecticut.

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